Love Comes Twice
by AngelycDevil
Summary: As a child, he scoffed at the idiocy of "Romeo and Juliet." Fifteen years later, Edward Cullen comes to know the compelling reasoning behind Romeo's sacrifice. AH. 100-word chapters. Drabble. Updates every Friday.
1. Chapter 1

LOVE COMES TWICE

by

AngelycDevil

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**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. Stephenie Meyer created it all.

**Author's Note:** This is rated M because **WARNING** this story deals with sensitive topics that some readers might not be comfortable with. That's all I'm going to say, so please move forward with that in mind. :)

I'm sure you've heard this a million times before, but reviews are an author's heroin. It motivates, encourages, and makes us completely giddy when we see a [New Review] alert in our inbox. So, please, feed my addiction as you see fit.

This is simply an idea that crawled its way into my head and wouldn't go away until I sat down to write it. I hope you like it. Many, many thanks to ProjectTeamBeta's itsange and RainDropSoup for making this drabble-fic pretty. xoxo

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**Chapter 1**

It's been three years, seven months, twenty-seven days, and sixteen hours since _she_ left to take a walk. _She_ claimed that she needed some time away from his controlling ass. _She_ walked out the house with her head held high.

_She_ never returned.

_She_ didn't say goodbye to him.

_She_ didn't say "I love you."

But, he knows he doesn't deserve those words.

He knows he never deserved _her_ and her kind, loving soul. Everyone made sure he knew that.

He ruined her, broke her spirit, and erased her smile.

He didn't know that then.

It doesn't matter now.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The doorbell dings. He doesn't move. He hears a sniffle and the clinking of keys.

_She just wouldn't leave him alone, would she? _He wants to growl. But his father will whoop his ass if he tries anything of the sort.

"_She means well, son. It breaks her heart to watch you like this._" He mimics his father's words in his head, right down to the British flair.

He cringes when the front door opens, light filtering in the room.

"Sweetie," the woman breathes. He wants to back away, but it'll hurt her feelings.

He isn't a monster.

Just broken.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

He tries. He tries so hard to find comfort in his mother's embrace. But the loving, warm pair of hands that wrapped around him when he felt pain, erasing negative energy, no longer contains the same magic.

No, she took _that_ away too.

He wants to scream. He feels the agony of three chainsaws ripping into him. In. Out. In. Out. In.

He prefers that.

He'd rather be dead than this state of in-between. All he feels is pain. His body doesn't move.

But he forces his jaw open when he feels the silver spoon on his cracked lips.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

She yearns to help him. She will give anything to see a smile on her son's face again.

Agony begins at the center of her heart and slowly spreads through her veins at the memories she has of her little boy. The torture only extends when she realizes that that's all she'll have. Memories.

She wishes she can blame someone. But who to blame? The killer? That man is already dead. He killed her daughter-in-law, and then himself.

She wants him to be alive and deal with the consequences of his actions. She wants to be the one killing him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

She closes the door behind her; he shuts his eyes.

_'Bout damn time._

He appreciates her coming, her thought of offering familiarity and comfort. But it doesn't bring the same warmth or happiness anymore. He's devoid of those emotions, so her arrival is simply an intrusion. It pokes a hole in the cocoon that he has so carefully built around himself. It pulls him back to a happier time; one he isn't a part of anymore. She brings memories, responsibilities. It pains him to be near it.

He just wants to forget.

The only way to forget is to die.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

He's been planning for a while now. Once he got over the initial shock, grief, depression, and denial (in no particular order), he started planning. He resigned from his work, split his savings between his parents' retirement fund and charities, sold his house and his cars. Everyone thought it was because of _her_ memory. They were wrong.

Selling everything…it wouldn't have erased _her_ memory. He wouldn't be able to forget _her_ even if he bleached his brain.

After days of research, he decided the best method was a bullet. It'll be short and painless. He owes that to his family, to himself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

He's been saving up by working at the bakery below him. He started five months ago. He's the chef's assistant. They keep him in the back.

He could've simply taken the money from his parents' retirement fund—it was his money to begin with—but he chose to be romantic and earn the money that'll kill him.

He works two hours a day, three days a week. This has been his routine for years. The billionaire who once graced the covers of _Forbes, Times,_ and countless more magazines works at the back of a Podunk town's bakery.

_Oh, the irony._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

He reaches up to smooth his hair while glancing at himself in the mirror. He looks like shit; there's no other way to describe it. The rings under his eyes are almost black with a reddish tint. He has a beard now, and his hair has grown to his shoulders. His face is drawn out and wrinkled. He slouches.

He looks like he's fifty instead of thirty-three.

He huffs and gives up on his hair. It doesn't matter. His shoulders roll back, attempting to straighten his back. His muscles groan in protest.

He sighs in resignation and leaves the bathroom.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

His jaw is taut. His palms are curled in, his nails digging into his skin. His steps are paced, too slow, but that's all he can manage. He reaches the entrance, inhales deeply, and pulls at the metal handle to open the door.

A clean, floral scent envelops him, and he feels dirty.

_Shut up, _he snarls at himself. _It doesn't matter, remember?_

He sighs and walks toward one of the desks. The lady at the desk looks up at his footsteps and turns her initial disgust to a welcoming smile.

He wordlessly hands her his check.

She smiles again.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Six hundred, seventy-four dollars and eighty-one cents, the lady said. He wanted to jump with joy. He still does.

The Viking is only six hundred and fifty-five. His chest feels light in anticipation. The right side of his lips are quirked upward as he waits near the bus stop. _Next stop: Charlie's Pistol Emporium._

The Viking pistol is a work of art with its locked breech, Pachmayr grip, and magazine capacity of eighteen rounds.

He grins at Charlie Geoffrey as he enters the store. Charlie's the only one who understands. Charlie lost his wife when he was in his thirties.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

He takes a deep breath. In his hand is a loaded semi-automatic gun. His knee bounces up and down.

Is he nervous? No, he's been planning this for too long.

He rises from his barely-used couch and sprints to his bedroom. He flips over his mattress, checking if everything is still there.

He wrote a letter to his parents last night, explaining everything, offering his perspective. He didn't ask them to forget him and move on. He knew enough about death to know the truth. Instead, he asked them to remember him and love him. Just like he does them.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_I should count it off, _he decides. _On three._

He presses the muzzle to the right side of his head, the metal cold against his skin.

He imagines _her_, his Bella, standing in front of him. Would she think any less of him now?

It doesn't matter; he'll see her on the other side.

He runs through his childhood memories, focusing on his parents and his little sister. _I even failed as a brother_. The thought makes him wanna cry.

_Even though I'm leaving, I love you with all my heart, _he promises his family.

One.

Two.

Three.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

_It's a strange feeling to not have a body, _he concludes.

He has a shape, but he isn't solid. Yes, he is in the afterlife now. It's not exactly a replica of Earth with ghosts walking around as he thought it would be. No, just empty fields and forests. Boring, except for _her_.

A delicate finger brushes across his cheek, and he turns.

"What?" he says, his eyebrows lifting.

"You're a thousand miles away," she observes, a light smile playing on her lips. Her eyes twinkle under the sunlight.

"Nah, I'm in heaven." _No pun intended, God. _

_~Fin~_

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**A/N: ***sighs* There. They got their happy ending. ;D

Infinity + 1 thanks to PTB's itsange and RainDropSoup for making this drabble pretty and my readers, reviewers, supporters for putting a huge smile on my face every weekend. Thank you. xoxo


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